


First Thanksgiving

by TheHeightsThatWuthered (JosieRuby1)



Category: Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald
Genre: Angst, Arguments, Family Drama, Family time, First Thanksgiving Together, M/M, Modern AU, Thanksgiving, food might get thrown, jay's parents, natsby - Freeform, natsby for life, relationship drama
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-21
Updated: 2019-07-31
Packaged: 2019-08-27 08:15:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,428
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16698754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JosieRuby1/pseuds/TheHeightsThatWuthered
Summary: It's Jay and Nick's first Thanksgiving together. If that wouldn't have been enough pressure, Nick makes a huge mistake in inviting Jay's parents without checking with him first.





	1. Chapter 1

Jay Gatsby treated Thanksgiving the way he treated every other holiday or festival, meaning that he overdid it. This was his first Thanksgiving since Nick had moved in permanently. Nick was somewhat overwhelmed by the situation. The Haunted House that the mansion had been for the entirety of October had only been returned to normal a few weeks past and now he was having to deal with the variety of oranges, reds and yellows that were beginning to cover to mansion interior mostly in the forms of decorative leaves and ornamental turkeys. Nick was both dreading and rather excited for the Hanukkah-Christmas season; Nick was Jewish and Jay of Christian decent and Jay had promised to give the best mash up in the history of mash ups.

The time had come for grocery shopping. They didn’t need to buy a turkey from a supermarket because Jay had spoken to a farmer and had chosen his own turkey from a selection of live ones. Nick refused to go to that, he was fine with meat and would never go vegetarian but he did not need the image of the specific live turkey in his head when he came to eat it. Everything else was needed though, potatoes, yams, carrots, parsnips, sprouts, green beans, pumpkins, apples and so much more. Nick for the most part was just nodding along with what Jay was saying, occasionally passing him the wrong thing off the shelves or out of the fridges.

Nick had a secret. A secret he knew he wasn’t going to be able to keep from Jay much longer. A secret he knew he had to tell Jay as soon as possible. A secret that was causing a panic in his chest and a tightness in his throat as though he no longer knew how to use words. He continued to follow Jay through the store on default, taking very little notice of where they were going or what Jay was doing.

“I invited your parents.”

The word tumbled out of Nick and was followed moments later but the sound of glass smashing. Both he and Jay jumped back. Jay had been comparing two bottles of wine and had dropped them both at Nick’s words. A pool of red and white liquids mixed as it widened. Nick’s eyes were only drawn from it when Jay finally spoke.

“You did what?” He said.

“I invited your parents,” Nick repeated. The words were the same, but they were more considered this time. They didn’t tumble out of his mouth in a rush but rather took their time, hesitating. “I thought-“

“You thought wrong,” Jay said.

Nick had not seen Jay angry many times. He had seen almost every other emotion from Jay, love, hate, desperation, fear, upset, happiness but anger wasn’t something Jay expressed often. Nick didn’t recognise it at first because he hadn’t been expecting it.

“You know I have nothing to do with my parents, Nick,” Jay continued. “You know how I feel about them, you had no right.”

“Thanksgiving is a time for families to come together and reconnect,” Nick replied.

Their argument was placed on pause as a member of staff came over to them. Jay, who had never been able to switch emotions instantly if they were not natural, stood to the side and seethed while Nick turned on the bright smile and sweet voice. Nick apologised to the member of staff, promised to pay for damages and then pushed the trolley onwards once they had been signalled that they could.

Jay had forgotten about wine, his excitement at preparing everything was lost now and the moment they were in the next aisle, he continued. “You do not get to make a decision as big as that for me,” He said. “I am not a child, you don’t have to go over my head. I thought relationships were about communications.”

“They are,” Nick said. He could feel his own angry rising to match Jay’s but he desperately did not want a full blown domestic in a supermarket. “and I thought this would be a nice thing to do for you to help you reconnect with them.”

“I have no interest in reconnecting with them,” Jay told him.

Nick sighed. He was quiet for a moment before saying, “Well, they’ve already agreed to come, so it’s too late.”

Jay only glowered at him and continued with the shopping. There was no care in what Jay was doing anymore he simply threw the first of each item he needed into the trolley and then push it to the check out.

Nick was the one making conversation with the cashier, while Jay just glared at the ground. Nick asked the cashier about their Thanksgiving plans and found out that they had a big family so it was always a big occasion. Once their shopping – and the smashed wine – was paid for, Jay pushed the trolley out to the car.

As a couple they had invested in a new car. Well, Nick struggled with calling it a joint investment when it was entirely Jay’s money. Jay’s old garish yellow one was written off after The Incident and Jay refused to be in a car as small and ugly as Nick’s old brown two-door. They had compromised with a dark blue car, with four doors and a large trunk.

Once the shopping was packed into the trunk and the couple were in the car, Nick pulled it out of the parking lot and back onto the road to Long Island. He was quiet, he knew that now they weren’t in public, there would be nothing stopping him from exploding with anger if the conversation returned.

Jay, however, was not willing to just leave it. “I cant believe you would do something like that.” He said.

“I cant believe you’re making such a big deal about it,” Nick replied coolly.

“I’m making the right about of deal about it,” Jay said. “You know exactly how I feel about my parents and yet you completely ignored my wishes and contacted them anyway.”

Nick shook his head. “It’s not a big deal, Jay. If my parents were alive, they would be there,” He said.

“You were in contact with your parents,” Jay replied. “I haven’t seen mine in almost a decade and I don’t wish to see them until their funeral.”

“Jay!” Nick gasped. “Don’t say things like that.”

“Uninvite them,” Jay said.

“I’m not going to do that,” Nick replied. “You’ll thank me when it comes around.”

Jay just scoffed and remained quiet after that.

*

Jay did not require human conversation and company as much as Nick did. He was used to living alone and having no close friends. Although his house had been near constantly filled with people, rarely was he talking to any of them and much of the time he wasn’t even in the party areas. He appreciated the quiet of his own company, and while he had come to love Nick’s company, he still appreciated being alone. This made it rather easy for Jay to give Nick the silent treatment over the next few days.

Nick tried to respond in the like, beginning with the certainty that Jay would come around, apologise for overreacting and start talking to him again. After a day past, Nick was a bit uncertain. Nick had had a lot of siblings growing up so arguments and a refusal to talk to each other was a regular thing. It never lasted like this though. After two days past, Nick began to wish he had never got into a relationship. It was hard living in the small cottage alone before Jay, but at least there was only a small space and there was no one to fight with there. After three days, Nick gave in. It was the day before Thanksgiving.

“This is getting silly,” Nick said, cornering Jay as he went to leave the kitchen with his morning coffee. “We need to talk about this.”

Jay stopped, “Okay. We’ll talk.” He said. “This is our first Thanksgiving together, I thought we would have a grand feast, we would eat far too much, we would get a bit too merry on wine, we would have a great evening and end the night curled up together. Instead, you went and turned it into what is bound to be the worst Thanksgiving since I left – and I was in the army for two of those.”

Nick held his hands up. “I’m sorry, okay. I should not have gone behind your back but I knew if I asked you there’s no way you would’ve said yes.”

“It’s a pretty poor apology if you go on to admit that you knew I wouldn’t be happy about it but that you did it anyway,” Jay said. “I have no time for my parents. I have my reasons for that.”

“Yeah,” Nick said. “You’ve told me all about this, remember? You think they are beneath you because they happen to be poor, you think you deserve better. You know who you sound like?” Nick didn’t wait for a reply and Jay wasn’t going to give one anyway. “You sound like Tom Buchannan.”

Jay slammed his mug down onto the worktop, causing some to spill over. “How _dare_ you,” He hissed, his hands shaking in anger. “How dare you compare me to that monster?”

“Perhaps if you weren’t acting like him, it would be easier not to,” Nick snapped back. A voice inside of him screamed at him to _stop this right now_ but he couldn’t seem to. He was furious. “You, Tom, Daisy, you all go about putting money and position and power above anything else, as though it means anything at all.”

“That man has a lot more wrong with him than a bit of classism, Nick,” Jay snapped. “The racism, the sexism, the homophobia, the violent tendencies. Or have you forgotten that he tried to have me killed?” He shook his head, angry tears filling at his eyes “I suggest you don’t speak to me for the rest of the day and we will have to see what tomorrow will bring.”

Nick’s anger fuelled him for the majority of the day. He had never had the wealth people like Tom Buchannan had and he had never understood the need for people to be judged based on how much money they had behind them. At Yale it had been easy to let people think he was rich, didn’t you have to be to attend an Ivy League University? How easily people forgot the existence of scholarships. Being the cousin of the rich Daisy Fey had made him seem richer than he was as well, he hadn’t really been truthful to people about his wealth until after he moved to West Egg. Jay Gatsby, who lived for the lavish parties and ran away from home to make a name for himself had fallen for him despite him having very little cash, so it was hard not to feel betrayed by the apparent inability in Jay to allow his parents back into his life, even for one day.

The anger had faded completely by the end of the day though, and as Nick lay in bed, hoping and praying that Jay would join him, he had nothing but regrets about the things he had said during their fight. Jay never did join him. Who knew which of the many rooms he had decided to sleep in instead. Nick didn’t sleep that night.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thanksgiving day is finally here, Nick and Jay are a united front again and the Gatz' are not a friendly pair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw for homophobia  
> tw for antisemitism  
> tw for implied past child abuse

Jay insisted that he was going to do the Thanksgiving cooking himself. A few months ago, before he had moved int, Nick might have protested that but he had since had many wonderful home cooked meals made by Jay and had nothing but faith in Jay’s cooking. This meant Jay had to be up early. As late night turned into early hours turned into morning, Nick kept an ear out for Jay moving around. Once he heard something, he went downstairs in his slippers and dressing gown and through to the larger of the kitchens where he found Jay stood at the worktop, preparing the turkey for roasting.

Nick watched, quietly for a while, it seemed as though Jay was almost finished, and he tried not to be disgusted as Jay stuck his hand up the turkey in order to stuff it. Jay was already dressed, although there was a ‘Kiss the cook’ chef over it, Nick could tell he was wearing the ugly turkey sweater he’d brought a few weeks again. The sweater was brown and had a brightly coloured cartoon turkey on it with the word ‘Gobble’ repeated three times down it. Nick couldn’t help but smile at Jay. The Jay Gatsby who through the parties and was a mystery was nothing compared to the Jay Gatsby Nick knew and loved.

The smile faded into tears. Nick had messed up, perhaps enough to lose Jay completely. He had meant well, missing his own parents and not wanting Jay to regret not seeing his. Nick knew now that it had never been his choice to make. What should have been a run-up to Thanksgiving with Nick teasing Jay about how much he was doing and Jay telling Nick he had to experience it properly had instead been fights and silence. He wished he could undo it but it was far too late now.

“I’m sorry,” Nick said quietly, as Jay stood back up from placing the turkey in the oven.

Jay turned to look at him, a furious glare faded into something more worried when he saw Nick there. He didn’t speak though.

Nick continued, “It wasn’t my decision to make. I never wanted to upset you. I’m sorry that I did.” Nick’s voice cracked, and he struggled through his tears. “I’m sorry for everything I said. You’re not- You’re nothing like Tom. You’re-”

Nick cut off as Jay’s arms wrapped around him. The hug was tight, reassuring, it felt safe to Nick and he broke down completely in Jay’s arms. He wrapped his arms around Jay in return and rested his head on Jay’s shoulder.

“You stuffed up,” Jay said. “And I’m still not happy that they’re coming, but we need to be a united front when they are here. Prepare for hell, old sport.” Jay pulled back slightly, just enough to be able to wipe the tears from Nick’s cheek. He kissed him gently. “Go get dressed and we’ll get through this.”

Nick shook with the tears, he couldn’t express his relief. He knew Jay was mad, he knew Jay had the right to be mad, but they _would_ survive this. Together. He kissed Jay again lightly before letting go and leaving the room.

*

When Nick came back into the kitchen, he was dressed in a cosy but plain beige sweater. Jay was in the process of chopping carrots. When Nick joined him Jay rolled his eyes and told him, “Next month I will get you in a festive sweater. I already have one hidden away for you.”

Nick dreaded to think what horrors Jay could have got for Hanukkah. “There is nothing wrong with wearing plain sweaters.” He told him, taking a knife ready to cut some green beans.

“It’s boring, old sport,” Jay complained. “I let you get away with it for Halloween, and I’ll let you today, but Hanuk-Mas you will join in.”

“Hanuk-Mas,” Nick repeated. He couldn’t help but laugh. Jay really was ridiculous. The best type of ridiculous.

“Yes, the best of Hanukkah and Christmas and it will go on for the entirety of December, and some of January,” Jay replied, swiping the carrots into a pan.

“Is there any time when there isn’t a celebration going on?” Nick asked, curiously.

Jay shook his head. “Never, old sport,” He replied. “Shall I go through the year?” Nick nodded curious and concerned and Jay continued. “January gives us new year and epiphany, new year can be dragged for a whole month. February is the time of love. March is Easter, April is your birthday-“

“Okay, okay, I’ve heard enough,” Nick laughed, as he scooped the green beans into another pan. “I firmly believe you can make the whole year a celebration.”

Jay grinned, “Never doubt it,” He said.

Hours were spent preparing food. There were times when Nick was shooed out of the kitchen. While he could easily cut things, he was useless at the actual cooking part. Jay expertly put vegetables on the hob, alongside potatoes to mash, know how high he needed the flame to be for each one. Jay knew without having to make a note what time he needed to start cooking each thing. The turkey was first thing because it took the longest, while the vegetables were last because they took only a few minutes.

As well as the mains, Jay was working on dessert foods. He made a pecan pie and a pumpkin pie. He had whipped cream on hand ready for them. He made an apple pie, cookies and a basic cake. The work was exhausting but Jay thoroughly enjoyed it. He was in his element in the kitchen. He did appreciate it greatly, though, when Nick brought a mug of coffee in for him, along with a cafetière ready for him to pour himself more.

*

Jay’s parents were due to arrive at four in the afternoon. By that time, the table was laid with four placemats and a glass at each one. Wine, lemonade and water were in bottles and jugs on the table. The turkey was in the middle, looking gorgeously tempting. Vegetables, roast and mash potatoes, yams, and so much more surrounded the turkey. The table was a picture, Nick thought, better than anything a restaurant could have created. Jay was pacing in the entrance hall from around ten to four until the doorbell rang at a few minutes passed.

“Here we go,” Jay said, waiting for Nick to join him in before taking a steadying breath and opening the door.

Jay’s Dad was wearing a cheap, untailored suit and his Mum wore a pale blue dress, patterned with flowers and looking rather old.

“Hello, James,” His Dad said formally, and Jay cringed.

“My name is Jay,” He said, coolly.

“It’s nice of you to join us, Mr and Mrs Gatz” Nick said, politely, offering his hand to Jay’s Dad, who shook it. Nick then offered it to Jay’s Mum, who instead pulled him into a hug.

“There’s no need for all this formality,” She said, once she had let Nick go. “Call me May. My husband here is Henry. Now are we going to have this discussion on the doorstep or are you going to invite us in?”

Nick was a little taken aback but he and Jay both stepped aside so they could come in. They lead them through to the dining room. May’s eyes widened at the amount of food there was. “Well, we certainly aren’t going to go hungry,” she said. “Nick, do we have you to thank for the food here?”

“Oh no,” Nick smiled, directing them to their seats before taking his own. “I’m a disaster in the kitchen. This is all Jay’s handiwork.”

Henry scoffed. “James? Cook? James can barely boil a pot of water.”

Nick’s smile faded but he didn’t have time to respond because Jay jumped in first. “A lot has changed since you last saw me, Father.”

“Yes, I can see that,” Henry said, scornfully.

“Shall we eat or would you rather cut straight to the judgements?” Jay asked, standing up ready to carve the turkey.

It was May who answered, “We came here to see you, James, not to judge you.” Her voice was soft but it was clear Jay didn’t buy it. Nick looked between his partner and the parents, regret already increasing in him.

Jay didn’t reply and instead just carved the turkey. He gave everyone a hearty serving of meat and stuffing before sitting back down. Once the turkey was served, Jay told everyone to help themselves to the rest of the food.

“What? No grace?” May asked.

“Ma,” Jay said with a sigh. “I am hardly religious and Nick is Jewish.”

A tension filled the air there. Nick felt a lump in his throat about how this was going to go. He looked between the three and caught May giving Henry a look. He didn’t know what it meant but Henry closed his mouth and didn’t say whatever he was going to say.

The only sound that filled the room for a while was the clattering of cutlery as people reached for food and drinks. Nick poured himself a large glass of wine, feeling that he was going to need it to get through this. He saw Jay do the same, which surprised him as Jay rarely drank. The food was delicious and it was enough to keep from any conversation for a while, but the longer the silence went the more awkward it felt.

“So, Nick, what is it you do?” Henry asked.

It was hard not to feel as though no answer would be good enough but Nick just answered honestly. “I work on Wall Street. I sell bonds,” He smiled, and tried to lighten the mood. “At least I try to.”

Henry turned to Jay, “See now, James, that is a good honest hard-working job. What is it you do exactly?”

“I work in pharmaceuticals,” Jay replied. “In the business of supplying and distributing. I hardly see what is wrong with working to produce medication.”

“And you got all this money doing that did you?” Henry asked. “You just help people out? No one gets this rich from helping people.  Still, you always were above your station.”

“If what you think is my station is being kept down and derided on a farm in the Midwest,” Jay said. “Then I am glad I have moved above it.”

“James,” May said, with a sigh. “All we ever wanted was for you to lead a good Godly life and to keep the family business.”

“Which I had no interest in and as soon as you lost the ability to continue me you lost interest in me,” Jay said. “Believe it or not, I am not the devil because I moved to New York and made money and a name for myself.”

“We gave you life, we looked after and cared for you, the least you could have done was have had some respect for us.” Henry snapped.

Jay’s anger was growing now and he snapped back. “Respect is earnt by giving respect, not with a sharp hand.”

Nick’s head swung around to look at Jay then, panic in his eyes. Did Jay mean…? If Nick had even suspected it was anything like that, he never would have invited them.

“You were always a bit unruly, James,” May’s voice remained calm, apparently it was always calm. “A parent has the right to keep their child in line. To attempt to rear them correctly. Of course, they are not always successful. Sometimes, they still go wrong.”

Jay laughed and poured himself another glass of wine. “Ah, yes, Mother why don’t you tell Nick here how I have ‘gone wrong’.”

“This is not a conversation to have other a lovely Thanksgiving dinner, James,” May replied. “We came here to see you because we thought you wanted to reach out, return to a truer path, we can see now that you do not, so how about we just enjoy the food?”

“I’m on the truest path I could be on,” Jay said. “I have a question, Ma, do you know who Nick is?”

“A friend of yours, I believe?” May replied.

Nick took a deep breath and poured himself another large glass of wine. This bottle wasn’t going to be enough, even with the parents drinking water.  

“No, Nick is my partner,” Jay said. “As I’m sure he told you when he invited you. He is my _boyfriend,_ my lover. He is my-”

“We get the point,” Henry shouted, slamming his cutlery down.

Nick didn’t miss the flinch Jay gave at that. He reached over and took Jay’s hand, reassuringly. Jay looked somewhere between worried and furious. He didn’t get a chance to gather himself enough to speak though.

Henry repeated. “It is bad enough that you are fraternising with Jews,” Outwardly all Nick did was roll his eyes, he had expected this after all, but that didn’t stop the stab he felt in his heart. “but the disgusting thing you are doing with other men is unacceptable.” Henry wiped his hands on a napkin and stood up. “You are no son of mine.” He said.

Jay didn’t reply. Nick felt his shaking and knew that this entire confrontation was too much for him. Jay had begun to shut down. Nick had only seen this happen once before – after everything with Daisy and Tom. Nick squeezed Jay’s hand before letting go and standing up.

“Allow me to show you out,” Nick said. He didn’t bother to check if the Gatz’ were following him. He stopped when he got to the front door and opened it. As the Gatz’ walked through the entrance hall and out the front door, Nick continued. “Well, it was certainly something, meeting you. There are so many things to be thankful for on this Thanksgiving and getting to close this door with you on the outside is just one of them.”

He slammed the door before they had a chance to answer.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jay shuts down completely and Nick talks him back.

Jay Gatsby didn't close down very often. In fact, Nick had only seen it happen once in the time that he had known Jay. When Myrtle had been killed and George Wilson came for revenge but hadn't got it and instead Jay had witnessed the man killing himself, Jay had closed down. Nick had got home to find Jay standing at the edge of his pool with his eyes glazed over seemingly unaware of anything at all. The man who usually took Jay his phone had informed Nick that Jay had been there around ninety minutes without moving, barely even seeming to breathe. Nick had managed to convinced Jay to come inside, but he it was a long time before Jay was responsive again and even longer before he was back to his usual self.

Once they had gotten through everything and were officially together, Jay had opened up about everything. His inability to understand emotions a lot of the time, the way he struggled with reading social cues, the way things got too much if it was loud or bright in a way that he couldn't control. The parties were the exception, but not always, Jay hadn't always been able to attend his own parties because of the sensory overload. And he told Nick about how, when worse came to worse, he would just shut down completely. Unmoving, unthinking, unacting. As though he was some sort of machine that had just been turned off. Nick had learnt how to help Jay in those moments, but the complete shutdown had never come again.

Until now.

When Nick walked back into the dining room, Jay was staring part way across the table, his knife had slipped from one hand, but his fork was still in the other. Nick felt almost dizzy with guilt, knowing that he had caused this level of pain and panic within Jay that had led to this. He was supposed to be the person to help Jay, not the one who hindered. Nick Carraway, who claimed to listen to his father's advice about judgement, had been far too quick to judge Jay about his parents, not giving him the chance to explain to himself.

Through fear of startling him into injuring himself, Nick didn't touch Jay as he approached the table, instead he took his seat next to him again. "Jay? Can you hear me, darling?" He asked, carefully. There was no response. But Nick hadn't expected one. It wouldn't be this easy. "Jay, it's Nick Carraway. You're safe now, Jay." He added, keeping his voice as gently as he could. "There was no one else here now, it's just me and you."

Slowly Nick placed a hand over Jay's hand, but there was no response to that either.

"If you can hear me, why don’t you tell me about your latest suit?" Nick suggested. Jay had told him after the last shutdown that he should talked to him about something unrelated to the situation, any sort of subject that was easy for Jay. And fashion was something Nick knew Jay to be passionate about. The closets had been full of clothes, male and female, all the height of fashion. Even when dressed casually, Jay Gatsby wouldn't be caught dead in something cheap or unstylish. “It’s a pink one isn’t it? From that tailor you like so much?”

Jay turned his head just slightly, “Salmon.” He said quietly.

"What's that darling?" Nick asked.

"It's not Pink, it's salmon," Jay repeated.

Nick gave a small confused frown. It was good that Jay was talking, he had to keep him talking. "What's the difference."

"That's like asking the difference between true blue and sky blue," Jay murmured. "Pink is a specific shade, the other shades that people call pink, they aren't pink, they have their own names. Pink is a lot dark and more vibrant. Salmon is a lot softer and subtler. Salmon has an orange tinge to him."

"I see," Nick said. "I guess I never really thought about the difference in what people thing are singular colours." He commented. "You'll have to teach me about the differences more. What other pinks aren't actually pink?"

Jay shrugged slightly. "Magenta, carnation, bubble-gum, strawberry, and fuchsia, are the ones I can think of right now.” He listed. “They are very different colours when seen together, but people just say pink. It’s technically right, but it’s not really right.”

“Shall we move to the living room?” Nick suggested, “It’ll be more comfortable.”

Jay nodded just slightly and moved to his feet, he took Nick’s hand and walked with him to the living room. At the couch, Jay sat, leaning against one end of it. When Nick sat, he kept some distance between the two of them, so he didn’t overwhelm him.

Jay was quiet, playing with the edge of his sweater. Eventually, Nick spoke. “I’m sorry, JayJay,” He said softly.

“It’s fine,” Jay said, softly, not looking at him. “I mean it’s not fine, but it’ll be fine”

Nick leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek, glad to find that Jay didn't flinch or move away from him. "I know it's not fine, darling, I'm so sorry." He repeated. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Jay hesitated, "No." He said, firmly. Then he frowned. "Yes?" He shrugged. "Maybe... I don't know. It's just a thing, I don't really think about it most of the time, I just... don't talk to them because of pretty much everything about them. They aren’t good people, old sport."

Nick nodded, "I see that now, I’m sorry. I- I didn't know it was like that. You always just said you wanted something better than that life. You almost implied it was because they were poor.

"I didn't want you or anyone to know what it actually was, I just thought you would know that I didn’t like them, and it would be enough," Jay commented. "When people know stuff like that, they act different."

"I should've accepted it," Nick said, "I was projecting missing my own parents on to you, I thought... I thought it would be good if I could help you to reconnect, so that you didn't have any regrets. I should never have gone behind your back about it... If I had just spoken to you." Nick sighed, wiping his eyes to stop the tears that were threatening.

"You're right," Jay agreed, but he wasn't angry. "You should have spoken to me, it should have been my choice. But it's done now, and I just wanna forget about it. I just... I don't want to think about them. Can we just go back to having our thanksgiving?"

Nick gave him a small smile and a gentle kiss, "Of course, darling." He said. "Though, I think the food will be cold at this point."

Jay smiled back at him. "I guess we'll just have to skip straight to dessert then."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who's read this. Sorry about the eight month gap.


End file.
